Sylvester - Disco Heat--the Fantasy Years 1977-1981 - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

When the self-described Inchdisco queenInch known as Sylvester stepped on a New York stage opening for Chaka Khan, the local press was entranced. One newspaper approvingly noted that he made InchDavid Bowie look like Lawrence Welk.Inch Nothing was too outrageous for Sylvester. But at his core, he was serious about music and about breaking down the walls of identity. In appearance and demeanor, the unapologetically gay San Francisco star challenged the gender binary long before such discussions were in the mainstream, going far beyond androgyny to create a striking persona all his own. Now, Real Gone Music and Second Disc Records celebrate the late trailblazer with the of the first comprehensive anthology of his seminal recordings for Fantasy Records. Disco Heat The Fantasy Years 1977-1981 features 25 tracks on two CDs drawn from all six of his albums for the tag, as well as the rare 12-inch Disco Versions that kept the dancefloors burning. In addition to versions of every hit Sylvester scored for Fantasy featuring crossover smashes like InchYou Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)Inch and InchDance (Disco Heat),Inch the collection offers an array of remarkable covers including his moving live version of Patti LaBelle's InchYou Are My Friend,Inch a smoldering medley of Barry Manilow's InchCould It Be MagicInch and Leon Russell's InchA Song for You,Inch Leiber and Stoller's dramatic InchI (Who Have Nothing),Inch Ashford and Simpson's InchOver and Over,Inch the Peggy Lee standard InchFever,Inch and Burt Bacharach and Hal David's InchI Took My Strength from You.Inch Featuring the vocals of Izora Rhodes and Martha Wash, later known as The Weather Girls, Disco Heat traces Sylvester's Fantasy career with an emphasis on the bold dance music he made, underscoring the significance of black and gay artists to the creation of disco itself. Joe Marchese of The Second Disc provides detail